TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Former director for public engagement at the U.S. Embassy in Seoul, Pope Thrower (蘇柏朋), became the new American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) spokesperson on Wednesday (July 31), per an AIT press release. 

Before serving in Seoul, Thrower was the public diplomacy coordinator for Japan and South Korea, spokesperson for the U.S. Embassy in Hanoi, and assistant speaker at the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad. He was also stationed in Chengdu, China, and served as the Pakistan section officer and Sri Lanka and Maldives section officer of the U.S. State Department in Washington.

AIT also appointed Andy Dilbert as its new deputy spokesperson. He was previously spokesperson of the U.S. Embassy in Algeria, cultural and education officer at the U.S. Embassy in Haiti, and deputy cultural officer at the U.S. Embassy in Israel. He also served in Casablanca, Morocco, and Hueyaki, Ecuador.

The two new appointments for spokespeople follow on from Raymond Greene, who took office as AIT director on July 9. Taiwan President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) received Greene at the Presidential Office in Taipei on July 10, when he said the Taiwan-U.S. partnership would continue to grow with Greene’s support.